Well-study Start Costs $20,000

DEERFIELD BEACH — The first phase of an investigation into the chemical contamination of two city water wells will cost $20,000, the project manager directing the study said.

Gary Eichler, the project manager for CH2M Hill of Deerfield Beach, said that cost includes initial efforts along three fronts of the investigation - locating the chemical`s source, evaluating cleanup methods and finding possible sites for new wells.

Eichler said preliminary test results determined the primary source of contamination is limited to the vicinity of the well first contaminated with ethylene dibromide, or EDB. The precise source or cause of the contamination has not been determined.

This year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency prohibited the chemical`s use as an agricultural fumigant for citrus and other crops after it had been shown to cause cancer in laboratory animals.

City Engineer Dale Holinbeck said the city`s utility fund had sufficient reserves to cover the cost of the investigation.

Holinbeck said representatives of CH2M Hill and the city last week signed the work authorization permitting the firm to do the work.

Eichler said more conclusive data from the Broward County Health Department and Environmental Quality Control Board available this week should provide the best indication of where to direct the search for the source.

The initial search included sampling 12 to 15 smaller wells near the well first contaminated to determine the extent of the chemical`s spread, Eichler said.

The time necessary to find the chemical`s source isn`t known, city water treatment plants supervisor Monte Essen said, but the other two points of the investigation each should take a month to conduct.